Southpa Posted June 6, 2007 Report Share Posted June 6, 2007 No its not a book, but I could write one on this topic. I'm referring to people's , mostly friends of friends, guitars I have worked on and brought back into playable condition. I recently finished working on a person's classical guitar that was literally untuneable and unplayable. I had to reset the bridge which had slid forward at a cockeyed angle, made a new bone saddle, general cleanup and proper restringing / setup. I also had to reglue the back which was separating away from the sides in a few places. So I get a call this morning from the guy saying that the low E string buzzes. I take a lot of pride in my work and like to make sure everyone is happy. Sure its a cheap guitar and I don't charge much, especially for repairs that would usually cost more than what the entire instrument is worth. He figured the buzzing was coming from inside the guitar so I told him to loosen the strings and feel around inside for anything that might be loose, I dunno, bridge mount screws, bracing or whatever. I drive over to check out the guitar. I reach inside and feel around, nothing loose. I tune it up to standard pitch and play it for a bit, no buzzing! I hand the guitar to him and tell him to play it like he was when it was buzzing. So he tunes the low E string down to a D and starts WHALING away on it with a bigass plastic thumbpick. I can see the middle of the string oscillating a good 3/4" and yes, it certainly was buzzing. I'm thinking, "My GAWD! What an idiot!" I said, what do you expect to happen to a silver wound nylon string when you hit it like that? Sorry, but thats just the nature of the beast, its a cheap guitar and thats how they build them. You can't expect them to sound right when you play them like THAT! A while back I repaired a 12-string LYS guitar, total fret levelling, action setup etc. I got this thing into totally supreme condition. Brought it back to the owner and only charged him 50 bucks for my work. The next day he says he can't tune it right, tries to play it thru the phone saying "See what I mean?!!" "Sorry, I DON'T know what you mean. I'll be right over." So I make another house call and check out the guitar. I find both high e's and B strings are tuned roughly 3 whole STEPS higher than they should be! I'm thinking. "What gives here? Are you an idiot?" I'm really surprised that he didn't break any strings! Anyway, I tuned it properly and gave him a little lecture on how to tune a 12-string guitar. I don't know why I'm getting these winners (or should I say whiners) who don't know some basics. Both these guys have about 6 guitars each, you would think they would know better. Just for the giggles, anyone got similar experiences to tell? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rhoads56 Posted June 6, 2007 Report Share Posted June 6, 2007 Oh man... ive got some beauties.... But i guess pictures would be better, right?? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jon Posted June 7, 2007 Report Share Posted June 7, 2007 This is the one part of luthiery I'll love getting into - the true guitar newb stories. But for me, all issues have been simple fixes because I teach my friends what they're doing wrong as they do it. I haven't looked out into the moron field, yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SwedishLuthier Posted June 7, 2007 Report Share Posted June 7, 2007 I've got quite a few guys calling to here if I offer the service "changing strings and tuning up the guitar" It is mostly a guy that have had this dream of playing guitar for most of his life. Now the mid life crisis kick in and he gets himself a guitar. But at the same time he have come a long way in his life and career so he has got used to paying some one to do all the hard stuff for him. And some of those guys have been coming in with Martins, Taylors, fenders and guitars of their likes most often an acoustic. They often start with “I cannot get those pins or what they are out of that thing that holds the strings in the middle of the guitar…) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
marksound Posted June 7, 2007 Report Share Posted June 7, 2007 There are whole forums full of people who are chomping at the bit to screw up a perfectly good guitar. They won't listen to good advice, either, just the really really really bad stuff from people who know absolutely jack about what they're doing. I'm tellin' ya, it'll make blood shoot right out of your eyes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GoodWood Posted June 7, 2007 Report Share Posted June 7, 2007 (edited) There are whole forums full of people who are chomping at the bit to screw up a perfectly good guitar. They won't listen to good advice, either, just the really really really bad stuff from people who know absolutely jack about what they're doing. I'm tellin' ya, it'll make blood shoot right out of your eyes. Closest thing I have is that I gave a guitar away to replace an old Harmony, (Alvarez), and it ended up with someone else, who has never touched it. STill, its ' in the family', and that is the one that I was going to replace the top with a cheap but solid Carpathian spruce top, in place of the apparently plywood top. Lol the kid left the house without taking it. But he 'wants to learn it' as well as the cello, violin etc...etc etc... Its in your blood or it aint. Edited June 7, 2007 by GoodWood Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soapbarstrat Posted June 7, 2007 Report Share Posted June 7, 2007 Most people who don't play guitar think the only thing that could possibly go wrong with a guitar is a string breaking (that's what makes me reluctant to tell people I'm in the business). But then you have some who do play who think the same thing. And there's those who think it doesn't matter what screw you turn and how much this way or that you turn it, AFTER YOU JUST DID A FULL SET-UP FOR THEM ! And there are many who think their life sucks, and a guitar repairman's life must be a never ending fairy frollic in a field of flowers, and it gives them a right to treat the repairman like dirt, because he must have it so good, that he's oblivious to being treated bad. And your work will get much less respect when you do it for nothing, or next to nothing, for friends and family. I still have that happen sometimes. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
weaponepsilon Posted June 7, 2007 Report Share Posted June 7, 2007 I got one. A guy at work asked if I could look at his four string for him. He kept complaining that the G kept buzzing when he played. So I get his guitar and its practically out of the bag. I play it open, nothing, I play it exclusively, nothing. I was about to pack it up when I touched the string and it fretted slightly. The problem, I wasn't pushing the string all the way down with my pinky. I asked him how he played that string and he said with his pinky of course. He was so new he hadn't developed any strength in his little finger! I lowered the action of his string about a few mm and hand it back, no charge. He goes on like, "superb work, a whole world of difference!" I tell him it was on the house and I just slightly twisted two screws. "No no man, I ALWAYS pay me debts. Here's five bucks!" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ibanez_crazy Posted June 7, 2007 Report Share Posted June 7, 2007 I love getting guitars in with floating bridges, and the guy changed his own strings, and upped the guage like 4 steps. "Man I think the bridge is broken" Purchased many a guitar from a newb that should be playing a hard tail or TOM, but had to have a wammy bar to wank on.....and then they are tired of bringing it back to me for a free readjustment Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Samba Pa Ti Posted June 7, 2007 Report Share Posted June 7, 2007 I love getting guitars in with floating bridges, and the guy changed his own strings, and upped the guage like 4 steps. "Man I think the bridge is broken" Purchased many a guitar from a newb that should be playing a hard tail or TOM, but had to have a wammy bar to wank on.....and then they are tired of bringing it back to me for a free readjustment lol my friend did that, bought a squier strat after asking me what guitar to get for months, i told him to get a telecaster since its better for staying in tune and him being a beginner, then he kept comming to me when it went out of tune.... i feel like stating the obvious but its a bit mean to go on at people because they did the wrong thing then have problems, even if it does make my piss boil... also one of my nephews that i hardly ever see bought a guitar 2nd hand, and wanted me to sort it out (this thing was crap..) an encore strat clone thats meant to be for beginners , these guitars really suck, they are sold everywhere as well (catalog stores sell them and dont even set them up, a lot of help for somone new to guitar) and they have the worst quality parts, plastic tuners (no chrome here) plastic coating on the neck/body (probably not wood underneath either) and a crappy trem system that wont sit against the body because it has the guitar equivelant of a slinky in the back for springs... i had to add £40 of parts to get that guitar playable (spare neck/tuners and some new springs). a horrible experience anyway... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IbanezFreak666 Posted June 7, 2007 Report Share Posted June 7, 2007 well my bands other guitarist managed to restring his electric with half the bridge upside down O.o and the people who setup his guitar did it so bad that half the bridge turns upside down even if you string it the right way up :/ so i have to sort it all out for him. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
biliousfrog Posted June 8, 2007 Report Share Posted June 8, 2007 a work collegue is in a classic rock covers band with a guy who used to play for a big 80's hair metal band, I won't say who....he has loads of guitars, mostly pointy Ibanez's, Jackson's etc with floyds & he takes them to the local music store for string changes because he doesn't know how to do it. He also covers the neck in baby-oil before playing it to help with fast widdling, my friend tried picking up his guitar once by the neck & it slipped right out of his hands onto the floor. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IbanezFreak666 Posted June 10, 2007 Report Share Posted June 10, 2007 ha i was just talking to someone online who was complaining that their locking trem kept going out of tune.... evveeentully after an hour of talking i found out she didnt lock the nut because she kept breaking strings....... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Acousticraft Posted June 11, 2007 Report Share Posted June 11, 2007 Ive seen several cases of young guys with cheap nylon strung classicals who think they will slap on a set of steel strings. It usually turns the guitar inside out then shears the bridge off when it cries enough. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.